Gripping device for a cooking utensil

ABSTRACT

The handle device for a cooking utensil comprises a grip ( 16 ) formed by a plate ( 11 ) sandwiched between two strips ( 12, 13 ), with a portion ( 14 ) of the plate ( 11 ) at its front end being terminated by a nose ( 15 ) and with a locking/unlocking device ( 20 ) being slidably mounted on the plate ( 11 ) and urged towards the nose ( 15 ) by resilient means ( 21 ). The locking/unlocking device ( 20 ) comprises a control pushbutton ( 22 ) placed at the front end of the grip ( 16 ) above the plate portion ( 14 ) and a latch ( 23 ) connected to the pushbutton ( 22 ) by a slider ( 24 ) placed in the front portion of the grip ( 16 ). This disposition of the pushbutton ( 22 ) at the front end of the grip ( 16 ) avoids accidental unlocking while the cooking utensil is in use.

PRIORITY CLAIM

This is a U.S. national stage of application No. PCT/FR00/03501, filedon Dec. 13, 2000. Priority is claimed on that application and on thefollowing application(s): Country: France, Application No.: 99 15652,Filed: Dec. 13, 1999.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the field of cooking utensils having at leastone outwardly-directed lug forming a handle plate.

In order to handle such cooking utensils, it is common practice to use aremovable handle comprising a grip that is stick-shaped. Having a handlethat is removable makes it possible to greatly reduce the overalloutside dimensions of the utensil, for example when the utensil is usedfor cooking in an oven, or while it is being washed in a machine, or forstorage purposes.

Removable handles are already known suitable for cooperating with thelug of the utensil, said lug having a slot for receiving a hook, nose,or other fixed element of the handle, and the handle also including asliding member mounted thereon and locking on the lug.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The state of the art is illustrated by FR 2 579 444 and DE 25 10 894which show removable handles in which the sliding member is actuated bya control pushbutton located on the top face of the grip.

EP 0 852 924, in the name of the Applicant, discloses an extra flathandle in which the control pushbutton is slidably mounted on the topface of the handle.

Those removable handles generally give satisfaction. Nevertheless, whenthey are used by a person who is elderly or handicapped, and who hasdifficulty in lifting the cooking utensil with a single hand that gripsthe handle firmly, the hand can take up a position over the controlpushbutton. If the hand of the elderly or handicapped person then slipsslightly on the handle, then the locking/unlocking member can move intothe unlocked position, which can lead to a catastrophe.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the invention is to provide a handle which includes a gripand in which the position of the control pushbutton makes it possible toavoid the above-described situation.

According to the invention, the control pushbutton is placed at the endof the grip so as to leave the entire grip free and so as to avoid anyrisk of accidental unlocking while it is in use.

The invention thus provides a handle device for a cooking utensilpresenting at least one outwardly-directed lug having a slot formedtherein substantially parallel to the inside edge of the lug, saidhandle device comprising a removable handle provided with an S-bend nosesuitable for being inserted into the slot of the lug from above, alocking/unlocking member mounted on said handle so as to be capable ofsliding along the axis of said handle, and resilient means for urgingthe locking/unlocking member towards the nose, said locking/unlockingmember presenting a control pushbutton on the top face of the handle, alatch on the bottom face of the handle for co-operating with the outsideedge of the lug, and a slider interconnecting the pushbutton and thelatch.

Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparentfrom the following detailed description considered in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that thedrawings are intended solely for purposes of illustration and not as adefinition of the limits of the invention, for which reference should bemade to the appended claims.

According to the invention, this handle device is characterized by thefacts that:

a) the handle comprises a grip formed by a plate sandwiched between atop strip and a bottom strip, said plate being extended at the front endof said grip by a plate portion which is terminated by the nose;

b) said plate has an oblong slot between the inside faces of said stripsfor guiding the slider;

c) a cavity open to the front face of the grip is provided in the frontsof the inside faces of said strips in register with the oblong slot; and

d) the control pushbutton is placed at the front of the handle and isconnected to the slider by an arm.

The following advantageous dispositions can also be adopted:

the locking/unlocking member is made as a single piece;

the plate includes a recess towards the rear end of the grip and in linewith the slot, the recess being broader than said oblong slot so as toallow the latch to be passed therethrough during assembly;

the latch is in the form of a stud which, in the retracted position, isreceived in part in a notch formed in the front face of the bottomstrip;

the oblong slot and the cavities provided at the front ends of thestrips house resilient means bearing against the rear face of the sliderand against the end wall of the cavities;

the plate also includes a cutout for receiving a correspondingprojection formed on the inside face of at least one of the strips so asto prevent sliding of said strip relative to the plate; and

at least one of the strips has a cavity in register with the cutout andin its inside face for receiving a corresponding projection formed onthe inside face of the other strip.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

Other advantages and characteristics of the invention appear on readingthe following description made by way of example and given withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal section on a vertical plane of symmetry throughthe handle device of the invention in its in-use position on the lug ofa cooking utensil;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the FIG. 1 handle device;

FIG. 3 is a cross-section view on line III—III of FIG. 1 through thehandle device;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the bottom strip of the grip;

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal section view on line V—V of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the plate of the grip;

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal section on line VII—VII of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a view showing the underside of the top strip of the grip; and

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal section view on line IX—IX of FIG. 8.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1, 2, and 3 show the lug 2 of a cooking utensil, of which only aperipheral portion 4 is shown. This lug 2 has a slot 5 extendingsubstantially parallel to its inside edge 6. The lug 2 extends outwardsfrom the utensil, substantially horizontally, and it presents an outsideedge 7 substantially parallel to its inside edge 6.

Reference 10 designates a removable handle used for handling the cookingutensil.

This removable handle 10 comprises a one-piece plate 11 which is rigidand of small thickness, sandwiched between a top strip 12 and a bottomstrip 13. The strips 12 and 13 have substantially the same width as theplate 11, but they are shorter than the plate 11. In front of the strips12 and 13, the plate has a portion 14 which presents an S-bend nose 15at its end suitable for penetrating down into the slot 5 from above thelug 2. The width of the nose 15 is smaller than the width of the plate11 and is substantially equal to the length of the slot 5. Thus, goingfrom its front end towards its rear end, the handle 10 presents theplate portion 14 followed by a grip 16 made up of the strips 12 and 13placed on either side of the plate 11. The plate extends beyond the rearend of the grip 16 where it provides a loop 17 (see FIG. 6) enabling theremovable handle 10 to be hooked onto a hook for storage.

At the front end of the grip 16, the handle 10 has a locking/unlockingdevice 20 which is urged continuously towards the nose 15 by resilientmeans 21 disposed inside the grip 16.

This locking/unlocking device 20 has a control pushbutton 22 above theplate portion 14 and spaced apart therefrom by the thickness of the lug2. It has a latch 23 for co-operating with the outside edge 7 of the lug2, and it also has a slider 24 interconnecting the control pushbutton 22and the latch 23. The slider 24 is mounted to slide in an oblong slot 25formed in the plate 11 between the front ends of the inside walls 12 aand 13 a of the plates 12 and 13.

Cavities 26 and 27 open to the front face of the grip 16 are provided inregister with the oblong slot 25 in the inside walls 12 a and 13 a,respectively.

The cavities 26 and 27 are defined by walls parallel to the axis 30 ofthe removable handle 10, which walls are at a small distance from theslider 24 so as to avoid impeding sliding thereof over the plate 11. Thewidth of the cavities 26 and 27 is greater than the width of the oblongslot 25.

As can be seen clearly in FIG. 3, the slider 24 has two side grooves 28a and 28 b parallel to the axis 30 and in which the edges of the oblongslots 25 are received.

Above the wall portion 14, the slider 24 has an arm 29 with the controlpushbutton 22 being carried on the end thereof.

The control pushbutton 22 located at the front end of the grip 16 is inthe form of a curved plate that is extended by a tab 31 overlying thefront end of the grip 16.

The latch 23 is in the form of a stud having a sloping front wall 32enabling the latch 23 to snap-fasten automatically to the edge 7 of thelug 2 when the nose 15 is inserted into the slot 5 of the lug 2 and thehandle 10 is pivoted downwards about the nose 15.

The resilient means 21 are in the form of a spring bearing against theends of the cavities 26 and 27 and bearing against the rear face 33 ofthe slider 24.

Advantageously, the locking/unlocking device 20 is made as a singlemolding.

The resilient means 21 urge the device 20 towards the nose 15. In thisposition, the slider 24 bears against the front edge 34 of the oblongslot 25, which front edge is situated in the same plane as the frontface of the grip 16, and the arm 29 extends forwards over the externalportion 14 of the plate 11. When a manual force is exerted on the frontface of the control pushbutton 22 towards the rear of the grip 16against the resilient force 21, the slider 24 slides towards the rearend of the oblong slot 25, the arm 29 is received in the cavity 26, andthe latch 23 is received in part in a notch 35 formed in the front faceof the bottom strip 13. In this retracted position of thelocking/unlocking device 20, the control pushbutton 22 covers the frontend of the top strip 12, and the latch 23 is disengaged from the outsideedge 7 of the lug 2, thereby allowing the removable handle 10 to beseparated from the lug 2.

The strips 12 and 13 are fixed to each other and to the plate 11 inconventional manner by means of two screws 40.

FIGS. 4 to 9 show the plate 11, the top strip, and the bottom strip ingreater detail.

As can be seen in FIGS. 6 and 7, the plate 11 has the plate portion 14terminated by the nose 15 at its front end and has the loop 17surrounding an orifice 41 at its rear end. The plate 11 is symmetricalabout a midplane containing the axis 30. Between the plate portion 14and the orifice 41 there are cut out the rectangular oblong slot 25which allows the slider 24 to slide, a recess 42 of greater width thanthe slot 25, and then a cutout 43 whose function is explained below. Thesize of the recess 42 is not less than the broadest section of the latch23. In order to assemble the handle 10, the locking/unlocking device 20is mounted initially on the plate 11, by passing the latch 23 throughthe recess 42 and then pushing the slider 24 towards the slot 25.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show the bottom strip 13 whose inside face 13 a presentsan internal cavity 45 facing the recess 42 and the cutout 43, and alsopresents bores 45 a, 46 b for passing the screws 40 and for receivingthe heads of the screws. At the front end of the top strip 13 there canbe seen the cavity 27 which receives a portion of the slider 24, and thenotch 35 which receives a portion of the latch 23 when in the retractedposition.

FIGS. 8 and 9 show the top strip 12 whose front end has the cavity 26.Beneath the inside face 12 a of the top strip there is provided aprojection 47 whose horizontal section is identical to the sections ofthe recess 42 and of the cutout 43 in the plate 11, and to thehorizontal section of the cavity 45 in the bottom strip 13. Thethickness of the projection 47 is substantially equal to the sum of thethickness of the plate 11 plus the depth of the cavity 45 in the bottomstrip 13.

The function of this projection 47 is to prevent relative slidingbetween the top strip 12, the plate 11, and the bottom strip 13.

Inserts 48 a and 48 b having tapped bores for receiving the screws 40are embedded in the top strip 12.

The strips 12 and 13 are molded out of a hard plastics material.

The plate 11 is made of rigid stainless metal.

Thus, while there have been shown and described and pointed outfundamental novel features of the present invention as applied to apreferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that variousomissions and substitutions and changes in the form and details of thedevices described and illustrated, and in their operation, and of themethods described may be made by those skilled in the art withoutdeparting from the spirit of the present invention. For example, it isexpressly intended that all combinations of those elements and/or methodsteps which perform substantially the same function in substantially thesame way to achieve the same results are within the scope of theinvention. Substitutions of elements from one described embodiment toanother are also fully intended and contemplated. It is also to beunderstood that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale but thatthey are merely conceptual in nature. It is the intention, therefore, tobe limited only as indicated by the scope of the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A handle device for a cooking utensil presentingat least one outwardly-directed lug (2) having a slot (5) formed thereinsubstantially parallel to the inside edge (6) of the lug (2), saidhandle device comprising a removable handle (10) provided with an S-bendnose (15) suitable for being inserted into the slot (5) of the lug (2)from above, a locking/unlocking member (20) mounted on said handle (10)so as to be capable of sliding along the axis of said handle (10), andresilient means (21) for urging the locking/unlocking member (20)towards the nose (15), said locking/unlocking member (20) presenting acontrol pushbutton (22) on the top face of the handle (10), a latch (23)on the bottom face of the handle (10) for co-operating with the outsideedge (7) of the lug (2), and a slider (24) interconnecting thepushbutton (2) and the latch (23), the device being characterized by: a)the handle comprises a grip (16) having a front end and rear end andformed by a plate (11) sandwiched between a top strip (12) and a bottomstrip (13) having opposing inside faces (12 a, 13 a), said plate (11)being extended at the front end of said grip (16) by a plate portion(14) which is terminated by the nose (15); b) said plate (11) has anoblong slot (25) between the inside faces (12 a, 13 a) of said strips(12, 13) for guiding the slider (24); c) a cavity (26, 27) open to thefront face of the grip (16) is provided in the fronts of the insidefaces (12 a, 13 a) of said strips (12, 13) in register with the oblongslot (25); and d) the control pushbutton (22) is placed 4t the front ofthe handle (16) and is connected to the slider (24) by an arm (29).
 2. Ahandle device according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that thelocking/unlocking member (20) is made as a single piece.
 3. A handledevice according to claim 2, characterized by the fact that the plate(11) includes a recess (42) positioned proximate the rear end of thegrip (16) and aligned and in communication with the slot (25), therecess (42) having a width broader than a width of said slot (25) so asto accommodate insertion of the latch (23) during assembly.
 4. A handledevice according to claim 3, characterized by the fact that the latch(23) is in the form of a stud which, in the retracted position, isreceived in part in a notch (35) formed in the front face of a bottomstrip (13).
 5. A handle device according to claim 4, characterized bythe fact that the oblong slot (25) and the cavities (26, 27) provided atthe front ends of the strips (12, 13) house resilient means (21), saidresilient means bearing against the front edge (34) of the oblong slot(25).
 6. A handle device according to claim 5, characterized by the factthat the plate (11) also includes a cutout (43) for receiving acorresponding projection (47) formed on the inside face (12 a, 13 a) ofat least one of the strips (12, 13) so as to prevent sliding of saidstrip (12, 13) relative to the plate (11).
 7. A handle device accordingto claim 4, characterized by the fact that the plate (11) also includesa cutout (43) for receiving a corresponding projection (47) formed onthe inside face 12 a, 13 a) of at least one of the strips (12, 13) so asto prevent sliding of said strip (12, 13) relative to the plate (11). 8.A handle device according to claim 3, characterized by the fact that theoblong slot (25) and the cavities (26, 27) provided at the front ends ofthe strips (12, 13) house resilient means (21), said resilient meansbearing against the front edge (34) of the oblong slot (25).
 9. A handledevice according to claim 8, characterized by the fact that the plate(11) also includes a cutout (43) for receiving a correspondingprojection (47) formed on the inside face (12 a, 13 a) of at least oneof the strips (12, 13) so as to prevent sliding of said strip (12, 13)relative to the plate (11).
 10. A handle device according to claim 3,characterized by the fact that the plate (11) also includes a cutout(43) for receiving a corresponding projection (47) formed on the insideface (12 a, 13 a) of at least one of the strips (12, 13) so as toprevent sliding of said strip (12, 13) relative to the plate (11).
 11. Ahandle device according to claim 2, characterized by the fact that theplate (11) also includes a cutout (43) for receiving a correspondingprojection (47) formed on the inside face (12 a, 13 a) of at least oneof the strips (12, 13) so as to prevent sliding of said strip (12, 13)relative to the plate (11).
 12. A handle device according to claim 1,characterized by the fact that the plate (11) also includes a cutout(43) for receiving a corresponding projection (47) formed on the insideface (12 a, 13 a) of at least one of the strips (12, 13) so as toprevent sliding of said strip (12, 13) relative to the plate (11).
 13. Ahandle device according to claim 12, characterized by the fact that atleast one of the strips (12, 13) has a cavity (45) in register with thecutout (43) and in its inside face (12 a, 12 b) for receiving acorresponding projection (47) formed on the inside face (12 a, 12 b) ofthe other strip (12, 13).